is a candy which is made and sold by Seika Foods in
Kagoshima
, is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 583,966 in 285,992 households, and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is .
Etymology
While the ...
. Similar to a
rice cake
A rice cake may be any kind of food item made from rice that has been shaped, condensed, or otherwise combined into a single object. A wide variety of rice cakes exist in many different cultures in which rice is eaten. Common variations include ...
, it is made of
maltose
}
Maltose ( or ), also known as maltobiose or malt sugar, is a disaccharide formed from two units of glucose joined with an α(1→4) bond. In the isomer isomaltose, the two glucose molecules are joined with an α(1→6) bond. Maltose is the tw ...
starch syrup,
nori
Nori is a dried edible seaweed used in Japanese cuisine, usually made from species of the red algae genus ''Pyropia'', including ''P. yezoensis'' and ''Pyropia tenera, P. tenera''. It has a strong and distinctive flavor, and is generally made in ...
, powdered
green tea
Green tea is a type of tea made from the leaves and buds of the '' Camellia sinensis'' that have not undergone the withering and oxidation process that creates oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China in the late 1st millenn ...
, soybean flour, and white bean paste. It is shaped into a small cube and wrapped in a thin film of edible starch. Hyōrokumochi can be bought at stores throughout
Kyushu
is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...
.
History
In 1931, Kagoshima Seika, the predecessor of Seika Foods, started to sell these candy.
Hyōrokumochi was named after ''Ōishi Hyōroku Yumemonogatari'', a Kagoshima book written by Japanese writer Mōri Masanao.
On the box, there is the picture of a young soldier from Kagoshima wearing a
fundoshi
is a traditional Japanese undergarment for men and women, made from a length of cotton.
Before World War II, the fundoshi was the main form of underwear for Japanese men and women. However, it fell out of use quickly after the war with the int ...
, the traditional Japanese undergarment for adult males, made from a length of cotton. At first the company was unable to obtain permission for the packet because the man's bottom is bare. However Seika Foods insisted that the fundoshi hides everything that needs to be hidden, and so permission was granted.
It is currently imported to
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
from
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
by
JFC International.
See also
*
Botan Rice Candy
Botan Rice Candy is a specific brand of a category of Japanese candy called bontan ame (ボンタンアメ). Bontan ame are soft, chewy, citrus-flavored candy with an outer layer of rice paper or oblaat. The rice paper is clear and plastic-like ...
References
External links
SeikaFoods
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hyorokumochi
Wagashi